The Layoff Club

Laid off from Disney.

Disney is one of the only major employers whose severance plan document is publicly readable, tiered formulas, a 52-week cap, and healthcare rules in black and white. Read it before you read your packet.

At a glance

What's been reported about Disney severance packages

  • 1 week per year, up to 52 · Salaried and hourly, 5+ years of service
  • 4 weeks + 1 per year, up to 52 · Managers, 5+ years
  • 6 weeks + 2 per year, up to 52 · Directors, 5+ years
  • Matches your severance weeks · Continued company-plan healthcare

The latest

About 1,000 roles cut under the new CEO

In April 2026, weeks after Josh D'Amaro succeeded Bob Iger, Disney began laying off about 1,000 employees across traditional TV, the film studio, product and technology, and a consolidated marketing function. The published severance plan below governs how U.S. packages get calculated.

Previous rounds

How Disney has handled layoffs in the past

Disney's cuts have come with its corporate resets. The 2023 reduction of 7,000 roles ran in three waves under Iger's restructuring, and the April 2026 round of about 1,000 arrived weeks after a CEO transition, concentrated in traditional television, the studio, and a marketing organization that had just been consolidated under one chief. Consolidation first, cuts second is a sequence worth remembering.

What separates Disney from nearly everyone is that the severance plan itself is public. For employees with five or more years of service, the document specifies one week per year for salaried and hourly staff, four weeks plus one per year for managers, and six weeks plus two per year for directors, each capped at 52 weeks, with shorter fixed amounts below five years. Company-plan healthcare continues at active-employee rates for a period matching your severance weeks, before COBRA takes over.

A published plan changes how you check your offer. Your packet's math should reproduce the plan's schedule from your level, tenure, and weekly base pay, and a mismatch is a correctable error rather than a negotiation. The plan also contains the fine print people miss, severance requires signing a release, rehire during your severance period triggers repayment of the remainder, and WARN Act pay interacts with the schedule. Read the actual document before you sign, because at Disney you genuinely can.

Recent Disney layoffs

Quick answers

What severance does Disney pay?

Per Disney's published Severance Pay Plan, employees with five or more years of service get 1 week per year of service (salaried/hourly), 4 weeks plus 1 per year (managers), or 6 weeks plus 2 per year (directors), all capped at 52 weeks, with fixed smaller amounts below five years and higher tiers for vice presidents and above. A signed release is required.

Does Disney continue health coverage after a layoff?

The plan continues company-plan coverage at active-employee contribution rates for a Health Care Coverage Period tied to your severance schedule, four weeks for under five years of service or one week per year up to 52 for five-plus, with COBRA available after it ends.

Do I have to repay Disney severance if I'm rehired?

Per the plan, yes. If Disney or a controlled group member rehires you before your severance period runs out, you repay the portion covering the weeks remaining after your rehire date, and a similar proration applies to the health care payment.

What severance has Disney given laid-off employees?

1 week per year, up to 52 (salaried and hourly, 5+ years of service). Governed by Disney's standing Severance Pay Plan for eligible U.S. employees. Packages change between rounds, and your separation agreement is the only version that counts.

Where do I file for unemployment after a Disney layoff?

In the state where you worked, not where the company is headquartered. Disney's biggest U.S. hubs are California, Florida, New York. Severance usually doesn't block you from filing, and benefits run from your filing date, so file the same week.

Should I sign the severance agreement right away?

Not on the spot. First pin down how much review time you actually have. If you're 40 or older, federal law gives you 21 days to consider an agreement that waives age claims, 45 in a group layoff, and a waiver signed under a shorter deadline can be invalid. If you're under 40, no federal window applies and the deadline in your packet may be real, so confirm it in writing and ask for more time if you need it. Use whatever window you have to read the release terms, especially non-disparagement and no-lawsuit clauses, and don't stall past a real deadline, because offers can be withdrawn.

Can I collect unemployment if I got severance from Disney?

Usually yes, though some states delay benefits until severance pay periods end, and lump sums are treated differently than salary continuation. Check your state's rules on our state benefit pages, and file immediately either way so your claim date is locked in.

Help for people recently laid off from Disney

  1. File for unemployment in the state where you worked. Benefits run from your filing date, and severance usually doesn't block you. Disney's biggest hubs: California, Florida, New York. Somewhere else? Every state is here.
  2. Don't sign the severance agreement on the spot. Find out in writing how long you have to review it. At 40 or older, federal law guarantees 21 days, 45 in group layoffs. Under 40, the packet's deadline may be real, so ask for time rather than assume. Read our severance breakdown first. The clauses matter more than the number.
  3. Mind the health insurance window. Losing coverage opens a 60-day special enrollment period, and an ACA plan usually beats unsubsidized COBRA. Compare your options before the employer coverage lapses.
  4. Get your real runway number. Severance plus savings divided by reality. The calculator takes five minutes.
  5. Know which clocks are already running. Severance review windows, COBRA election, visa grace periods, and 401(k) rollovers all run on federal deadlines that started at termination. All five deadlines are here.